Ginger Thins

When it comes to looking for the best recipes to try/lean on for holiday baking, you can be really spoiled for choice. There are just SO MANY options out there to choose from. Cookies are the go-to option, but even with those you have a lot of possibilities.

In my opinion, the best holiday treats and more specifically, holiday cookies to make do have a few staple criteria.

Shelf-Life. Holiday cookies are usually stored in cookie jars and consumed over an extended period of time for the holiday season. They’re also mailed over short or long distances, which can take place over several days. Cookie recipes that have a short shelf life (i.e. go stale, fall apart, go mushy very fast) are thus, probably not the best choice for holiday baking. You want to choose cookies that will last/taste good for a while.

2. Texture. This is directly related to Criteria #1. Soft holiday cookies or holiday cookies with fruity/creamy/runny fillings taste great for sure, but they also have a short shelf life, and they also aren’t very durable or neat. This makes them less than ideal for holiday shipping. For those reasons, I would save those recipes for a holiday party where you know that they’re going to be served and consumed immediately. Aim instead for crisp cookies with a more durable structure and crumb that can hold up to a bit of banging around that can happen in transportation.

3. Flavor. The longer that a cookie sits, the longer that the spices/flavors in the recipe have to sit and permeate through it, resulting in a stronger/yummier taste. This is why it’s best to have a Christmas cookie with a long shelf-life and a crisp texture so that the longer it sits the better it ends up being flavored/tasting.

If you’re worried that those three criteria feel like a lot/too much to try and meet in one cookie dough, don’t be.

Because today’s recipe does just that.

In my opinion ginger Thins, or ginger snaps because that’s essentially what these are, are the PERFECT holiday cookie. They tick all of the boxes: they have a very long shelf-life and will stay fresh/edible for a while after you make them. This largely due to their crisp, snappy, and overall durable texture that holds up extremely well for storage and shipping. And their strong, spicy gingery flavor only improves with time.

And as if THAT weren’t enough to convince you, these are also extremely easy to make. They’re what are sometimes called slice-and-bake/icebox cookies, meaning that once the dough is finished, it gets shaped into one or two logs that are refrigerated until firm, and then divided into slices that bake very quickly. There’s very little mess, fiddling around, or standing around in the kitchen with these–which is exactly how I prefer my holiday baking to be these days.

Aaaand that’s all she wrote for Day 2 of the 12 Days of Christmas. Check out our recipe for Day 1 below and stay tuned: there’s lots more delicious eats to come 😉

Day 1: Holiday Lunch Lady Bars

Day 2: Ginger Thins

Ginger Thins

Recipe Adapted from Taste of Home

Ingredients

6 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, divided
2 tablespoons molasses
1 tablespoon strong brewed coffee
1 14 cups all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoons ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions

In a medium sized bowl combine the flour with the spices, the baking soda and the salt. Stir together a few times with a fork and set aside.

In a large bowl cream together the butter and 1/2 cup of the sugar with a handheld mixer until light and creamy, 5-7 minutes.

Beat in the molasses and coffee.

Add the flour mixture, mixing just until combined.

Shape the dough into one large log about 7 inches long. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Unwrap dough and cut into 1/8-in. slices; place 2 in. apart on parchment-lined baking sheets.

Sprinkle tops of cookies with the reserved sugar and

Bake 8-10 minutes or until firm.

Allow to cool for about 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool.

Note: no one oven is the same, & different baking sheets bake cookies differently. Keeping this in mind, I will ALWAYS test bake one cookie before baking entire sheets of the whole batch, just to get a good idea of how long they should be in the oven and if I need to adjust the way I’ve cut, rolled them out, etc. I highly recommend that you do the same.